An Introduction to Kanban for Software Development Teams
A good idea can become a spoiled mess if you use the wrong approach to realize it. Software development is no exception, and broadening your knowledge of Agile processes not only helps keep a project from spoiling but also serves as a powerful tool for your organization.
Enter Kanban, the visual, tactile way to coordinate a workflow and reduce waste while maximizing efficiency. Using simple cards and a chart to define your process, Kanban’s methodology is the low overhead way for teams new to Agile to improve their workflow.
This article will explore the basics of Kanban and how you can use it as another tool in your project management tool belt. As with all new tools, let’s start by understanding what the heck it is!
Table Of Contents
- How Kanban Evolved into a Methodology for Software Development
- The Kanban Methodology for Software Teams
- How to implement Kanban Roles in Software Development
- The Pros and Cons of Implementing Kanban for Development
- Three types of Software Teams that Could Benefit from Kanban
- Getting Your Development Team Started with Kanban
- Is Kanban Right for You?
How Kanban Evolved into a Methodology for Software Development
Chances are you’ve heard of Kanban, but it’s less likely you know the story of its origins. What is now an Agile method for developing software started in Toyota’s automotive factories, longer ago than you may think.
Kanban originated in these Japanese facilities around 1940 as a method of addressing waste in the day-to-day workflow. The word “Kanban” comes from the Japanese word for “sign” or “billboard,” in reference to the cards which structure this approach.
What Toyota would do is accompany automotive parts with physical cards that detailed the part, what needed to be done to it, and where it needed to go. The act of passing these cards along a workflow reduced issues and made it easier to spot waste.
It’s a process older than most people in today’s tech sector, but despite that, it persists as one of the most popular methods of Agile development still practiced to this day. The transparency of a Kanban card moving along a workflow has been adopted in the field of software development with great results. Kanban lets teams get straight to the point and focus on reducing waste where it’s most apparent in software – in the workflow. But now that we have an idea of where it came from, let’s get to the interesting part – how do I use it on my development team?
